"Sesame Street" Just Introduced Its First Muppet With Autism

"It's really meaningful to see her there, singing with Elmo, Big Bird and all the other characters."

Sesame Street

By
MATTIE KAHN

Mar 20, 2017

Sesame Street, the beloved show that airs on the very same public broadcasting network that's been threatened under the new Trump budget, has debuted its first new muppet in a decade. Julia is a 4-year-old redhead who loves to paint and sometimes repeats what her friends say. Also, she happens to have autism.

Julia was first introduced into the Sesame Street universe via books and online games, associated with the show's "See Amazing in All Children" campaign. But Sherrie Westin, an executive vice president at Sesame Workshop who oversaw the initiative, said she saw that Julia resonated with audiences.

"We realized if we brought her to life appearing in Sesame Street on air as well, she would have even more impact [and] be able to reach even more children," Westin told NPR.

Stacy Gordon, who plays Julia on screen, has been thinking of one such child in particular, her son, who is on the autism spectrum.

Julia will make her television debut next month, showing up in two episodes this season and set to appear in more episodes in future seasons.

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"She's one of the kids, she's one of the gang," said Rose Jochum, director of internal initiatives at the Autism Society of America, which helped Sesame Street develop the new muppet, on NPR. "It's really meaningful to see her there, singing with Elmo, Big Bird and all the other characters. It's great."